The Sun Also Rises

Ernest Hemingway’s masterpiece The Sun Also Rises (1926) is one of the most widely read novels in American literature. It showcases the plight of the post-war generation—the ‘Lost Generation’—, facing disillusionment and anxiety. Embodied by a group of American expatriates in Europe, namely Brett, Jake, Mike, Cohn and Bill, the sense of loss is emphasised in the novel by showing that love is ephemeral and pain and death are inevitable in life.
Many critics consider The Sun Also Rises as an autobiographical novel. Indeed, many features and events concerning the character Jake Barnes remind of the author’s own war experience and personal life (1899-1961). However, the term ‘Lost Generation,’ which was coined by the American poet Gertrude Stein, one of Hemingway’s contemporaries, applies to the post-war era and youth entirely in the aftermath of World War I, as portrayed by many other authors.